Relief items for Weija flood victims

Some relief items to be distributed

Some relief items to be distributed

The Weija-Gbawe Municipal Assembly, in collaboration with the National Disaster Management Organisation (NADMO), last Friday began the distribution of relief items to flood victims in the area.

The items included mattresses, blankets, edible oil, rice, buckets, bowls, mosquito nets and coils.

The distribution started with victims of the flood at Weija, numbering about 1,200, whose names had been captured.

Exercise

The Weija-Gbawe Municipal Chief Executive, Patrick Kumor, told the Daily Graphic that about 200 people were likely to be catered for under the first phase of the exercise, after which “we will come back next week to continue with the distribution as we secure more items”.

From Weija, he said, the organisation would move to Oblogo, SCC and then end at Tetegu, which had the largest number of victims of the flood of between 2,000 and 3,000.

Mr Kumor, therefore, appealed to those who were yet to receive support to be patient, as they would be taken care of.

Regarding the situation in the area, he said with the flood waters receding, the assembly and NADMO had called off their emergency rescue operation.

Distraught

The Member of Parliament for Weija-Gbawe, Tina Mensah, said she was distraught about the flood in her constituency.

She said although she was out of the country when the disaster occurred, she had to cut short her trip and go to the rescue of her people.

She said even though the opening of the dam to spill excess water was a regular thing, the effect on people in the area was so much.

Flooding

Many homes in and around Weija got flooded over the past week, leading to the destruction of properties, after the Ghana Water Company Limited opened four gates of the Weija Dam to allow the flow of excess water in order to save the dam from collapse.

That followed days of rains in the Eastern Region, the source of water for the dam.

The situation resulted in people abandoning their homes due to the flooding of their areas.

Schools, shops and churches had to shut down due to the flooding, which affected New Weija, Oblogo, Tetegu, White Cross, Tatop, parts of American Farm and Top Town at Ngleshie Amanfro.

Search, rescue

The Greater Accra Regional and the Weija-Gbawe municipal offices of NADMO subsequently embarked on a search-and-rescue operation to save human lives.

A delegation from the NADMO Headquarters, led by its Director-General, Nana Agyemang-Prempeh, toured the flooded areas and interacted with some of the victims.

Mr Agyemang-Prempeh, who was accompanied by his deputy, Abu Ramadan, and Mr Kumor, later advised people living in the buffer area of the dam, which is meant for irrigation, to relocate, as structures at those places would be pulled down.

The NADMO Director-General also visited the estuary which was opened for the flood waters to enter the sea.

As the water subsided, one person was later found dead in a house at Tetegu.

He was later identified as Addi Kwashie, 55.